Arathi
Basin hosts a 15 vs. 15 player battle over resources which either side
desperately needs to fuel the warfront.

You can join the battle starting at level 20 (brackets of
20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, 60-69, 70-79, and 80) to assist
either the League of Arathor (Alliance) or the Forsaken
Defilers (Horde). Constant fast paced battles are the main
draw to this excellent and quick game. The one thing to note is that
it’s best you wait until the higher level range of each
bracket before joining most battlegrounds, as you will be a liability
to your team if you, for example, are a level 40 in the 40-49 bracket.
You really should be at least at the mid-point for your current tier as
you will survive longer and contribute more to your team as a result.

Until reaching the level cap (or choosing to opt out) players can earn
experience in the battlegrounds, so if you’re looking for a
nice change of pace from the usual PvE level grind, Arathi Basin is an
excellent alternative. Players will receive roughly 0.8% of a level for
completing a match, 0.8% for every 260 resources and an extra 0.8% for
a victory. These percents are only estimates and the percentage of
experience gained will vary per level.

All entrances to Arathi Basin are located in the Arathi Highlands. The
Alliance entrance is located inside Refuge Pointe, while the Horde
Entrance is located just outside of Hammerfall. Prior to Patch 3.1
players were forced to either use these entrances, or queue up using
one of the Battlemasters located in each capital city. As of Patch 3.1
players may enter the queue from anywhere using the battlegrounds tab
in the Player vs. Player window.

Arathi Basin - Basics

style="float: right; width: 233px; height: 230px;" alt=""
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/80669">Each
team
begins with zero resources and work towards gaining 1,600
(prior to Patch 3.2 2,000 resources were needed) before the other team
to win. To gain these resources your team will need to capture the
resource nodes located in Arathi Basin. There are five resource nodes
(Lumber Mill, Stables, Mine, Blacksmith, and Farm), and when captured
these nodes each provide resources every few seconds. The more nodes
you control, the faster your team will gain resources, leading to
quicker wins. To capture these nodes, simply activate the
flag located at one of the above five locations. The flags have
activation times of eight seconds (down from 10 seconds as of Patch
3.2), but beware as any damage done to the person activating the flag
will interrupt the cast, and you will have to click the flag again and
start the timer over. Any player standing at a node that they control
will gain the Honorable Defender buff, which will grant them +50% honor
from each kill.

All nodes start out in a neutral state, with no owners. After the flag
at a node has been capped it will officially belong to the team that
managed to successfully cap the flag. Anyone who seeks to assault the
location will have to activate the flag which will throw the
node into a conflict status (much like the neutral state the nodes
start in). The team that originally held the node has
exactly one minute to reclaim the node before it’s
ownership is transferred to the other team. If a node is reclaimed by
the originall team while it’s in conflict, that
team will instantly gain back control of the node. A node in conflict
will provide no resources to either team, and players will no longer be
able to rez at that node’s graveyard.

If any players die during the game then they have the option of
releasing to the nearest graveyard. Each side has a permanent graveyard
at their starting location, just outside of the exit portal. When nodes
are successfully captured, players from each team will be
able to rez from the closest node controlled by their team. Each
graveyard has a Spirit Healer that will resurrect any players within
their radius once every thirty seconds, but be careful not to walk
outside of this range or you will not be resurrected.

Single groups of five, and premade raids of 15 may enter Arathi Basin
allowing players to team up with their friends for more coordinated
battles. Check out our Communication is Key section for more
information on groups.

Honor, Reputation, and Marks
of Honor

During the course of the match you will notice that you and your team
will be gaining honor, reputation, and at the end of the match Marks of
Honor. Most players strive to increase these gains, so here are some
ways to do just that:

style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Honor

You can gain extra honor by meeting these goals:

Collecting multiples of 260 resources

Winning the match

Honor gained will scale depending on your level, at higher levels you
will gain noticeably less honor.. Some scored events do not grant honor
such as: killing blows, capturing a node, assaulting a node, or
defending a node, however honor is awarded for honorable kills. For
even more honor goodness keep an eye out for the Arathi Basin Holiday
weekend.

style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Reputation

Players’ reputation will increase with either The Defilers
(Horde) or The League of Arathor (Alliance) by completing the following
goals:

Collecting multiples of 160 resources

Completeing Quests in Arathi Basin

style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Marks
of Honor

Unlike reputation and honor there is only one way to make sure you gain
the max amount of Marks possible; win the match. Winning a match will
grant your team three Marks of Honor, while losing will only gain you
one.

Resource Nodes

style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The
Farm

style="float: right; width: 300px; height: 195px;" alt=""
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/80671">The
Farm is located in the south-east part of the map, right outside of
the Defilers Den which is the Horde spawning point. The Farm, being so
close to the location of the Horde’s entrance, is generally
captured first by the Horde and is typically well defended.
Inside of the small house near the farm’s flag players will
be able to find a buff that will spawn from time to time that anyone
can take advantage of. The graveyard is located on the west side of the
Farm and can be a long walk if someone is assaulting the flag. If you
wish to attack the Farm, it's best to come up from the Mine. While you
have to cover more distance to reach the flag, you will be able to hide
your assault due to the buildings which help break line of sight and
will have plenty of space to flee if required.

style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The
Stable

style="float: right; width: 300px; height: 202px;" alt=""
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/80674">The
Stable
is located in the north-central part of the map, right
outside of Trollbane Hall (the Alliance Spawn point). Like the Farm,
the Stables are generally well defended by the Alliance and are
captured by soon after the start of the battle. The hidden buff here
will spawn inside of the stable building. The graveyard here is located
very close to the flag, making it a difficult location to assault,
unless left undefended, or a certain level of teamwork is involved.

style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The
Lumber Mill

style="float: left; width: 300px; height: 235px;" alt=""
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/80672">Located
on a hill on the west side of the map, the Lumber Mill is one
of the easiest nodes to capture and defend for either team.
It’s location gives players good scouting positions, that
will allow them to spot attackers from a distance. This also gives the
Lumber Mill a great tactical advantage, as it gives your side a
bird’s eye view of the Blacksmith, Farm, and
Stables. Defenders can call out which of the other nodes are
most vulnerable to attack, or about to be overrun by a large group from
the opposing team. As such this is a good node to capture early on in
the match.

The Lumber Mill encompasses a very small amount of actual
land, meaning attackers have little option but to charge straight in if
they wish to assault the flag. Caution should be taken here, as one
wrong step (or a well timed mind control), could send a player crashing
over the edge of the steep cliff (no durability loss will be taken). To
assault the Lumber Mill simply go up the cliff and fight! As mentioned
previously the location of the Lumber Mill leaves little options for
attackers, so give your best battle cry and charge in.

style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">The
Mine

style="float: right; width: 300px; height: 247px;" alt=""
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/80673">The
Mine can be found on the eastern side
of the map, and is a location
that is generally assaulted early in the game, but rarely defended.
However there are a few easy ways to defend the Mine without using a
ton of manpower, or strategy. Simply hide one of your team inside the
Mine, or use a player that can stealth. Once the flag at the Mine is
assaulted the player (or players) will usually leave, assuming that no
one is there to defend it. Once the players have departed the hidden or
stealthed player can quickly recapture the flag and then hide once
again.

The Mine is surrounded by relatively wide open space, and has a sheer
cliff that can be used by ranged classes to effectively snipe from,
which can be effective in either defending or assaulting the node. This
cliff also provides easy and quick access to the node as you can head
east from the Blacksmith and simply jump over the cliff. However it
should be noted that you will take falling damage, so it may not be the
best idea to plummet into the midst of your enemies unless you have a
friendly Mage or Priest around to give you Levitate or Free Fall. The
free bonus here can be found near the Mine in a small cart.

The Mine is one of the least tactically beneficial nodes to defend due
to being cut off from the other nodes in terms of line of sight. While
it can be easy to spot incoming attackers, most teams will opt to
control the Lumber Mill instead, only assaulting the Mine if other
nearby nodes are already held and the bulk of the opposing
team’s forces are on the far side of the map.

style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">The
Blacksmith

style="float: left; width: 300px; height: 220px;" alt=""
src="http://www.tentonhammer.com/image/view/80670">Kind
of like Tic-Tac-Toe, those who hold the
Blacksmith have a good
chance of controlling the map. Located in the very center of the map,
the Blacksmith is hard to defend, and easy to attack. Attackers can
come from almost any angle, which is sure to keep players defending the
Blacksmith on their toes. The ability to quickly access all other
resource nodes makes this location where the bulk of the fighting
happens. A free buff can be found inside the Blacksmith building.

Resource Points

As you gain control of the resource nodes you start earning points
towards winning. The more nodes that you control the more points you
earn and the faster you earn them as shown in the chart below.

Communication is Key

Working together as a team is a key factor to winning Arathi
Basin. While the battleground is quite simple in nature,
those without the ability to communicate efficiently will be
a great disadvantage against those who can. Using some form of voice
communication can greatly assist in this task.

Be sure to do some planning before the match starts, divide players
into teams and then decide which teams will be doing what. Some teams
will be stationed at nodes to defend them, while others will be moving
around the map assaulting nodes, or simply helping to defend nodes that
are under attack. Doing some pre-match planning will greatly decrease
confusion during the battle and will help aid in your victory.

Winning in Arathi Basin

There is no definite way to win Arathi Basin, and each team will need
to make use of it’s individual strengths and weaknesses,
however there are some simple suggestions and common strategies that
may help you obtain that victory:

style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Defend
Your Nodes - Having
everyone on offense is a very bad idea, be sure to defend the nodes you
have already won. If you don’t defend the nodes you capture,
you may discover that nodes that were once yours are now in the hands
of the other team. Leave at least one player at each node to defend the
flag and at the very least notify everyone when an assault is incoming.

style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">Kill
the Healers - While
a DPS classes may seem like the better choice of a target, be sure to
take out the healers first, trust me leaving healers alive is never a
good idea. That healer is inevitably going to be keeping up the very
DPS you are trying to kill, and if they have a healer behind them, you
are probably going to lose.

style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">To
Zerg or not to Zerg - If a
large group of enemy players assault the node you are defending, or
rush past, make the best of it by realizing that those players have
probably left another node undefended. On the other hand if you notice
that more than half of your team is in a single place, it would be wise
to leave, and find a node that is undefended or could use your help
against an incoming assault.

style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Battle
on the Flag - Anyone who has
done any number of Arathi Basins has probably seen this statement
shouted in chat. A common mistake people make is to engage the enemy
anyplace they find them, or running out to meet them as they make an
assault on a node. This is a bad choice, instead continue on your way
until you find a node you are needed at, or if you are defending a node
be sure to keep close to the flag, otherwise you may find an enemy has
capped it while you were out sating your bloodlust.

style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Cap
That Flag - In the frenzy of
battle it’s sometimes easy to forget what your goal is, and
as such epic battles can be waged, and no flag ever gets capped. Never
wait for someone else to do it for you, click on that flag and try to
cap it!

style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Hit
Everything - There is a good
chance that more than one person will try to cap a flag. So attempt to
use abilities that damage more than one enemy at once to prevent the
cap from happening.

Three
Cap

As the name implies this strategy basically requires your team to hold
and defend three separate resource nodes. The easiest nodes to complete
this with are the Stables, or Farm, Blacksmith, and the Lumber Mill.
Your team will need to split into three separate teams of five. Once
the match begins the teams will rush to these nodes and attempt to
claim them as their own. Once all three are captured, the only time
players will move is when another node comes under attack. In this
situation reinforcements from the closest node should intercept,
leaving at least two players behind to defend.

Example of team positioning for a three cap:

Team
A (Home Defense)
(Farm/Stables) - This team should defend the Farm or Stables
and should be prepared to assist any other node that comes under
assault.

Team
B (Blacksmith) - This is the
most important node to keep captured and as such the team’s
best players should be placed here. This team should expect to see the
most action.

Team
C ( Lumber Mill) - This team
should defend the Lumber Mill (or Mine, however the Lumber Mill is
probably a better choice due to it’s tactical advantages as
described above) and assist the Blacksmith if it comes under attack.

Four
Cap

More experienced teams can attempt to assault and defend four different
resource nodes at the same time. The most common way to accomplish this
is to split your group up into three teams of five, and a team of just
a single person. The three teams of five will head out to assault the
Lumber Mill, Blacksmith, and the Mine, while the single team member
will remain behind to cap and defend the Stables or Farm. The teams
need to be vigilant for any attacks aimed at the Stables or Farm, if no
action to aid the Stables or Farm is taken it will be easily overrun
and lost.

Five
Cap

Holding five nodes is difficult, and does not happen often. Holding
five nodes at a time causes the timer to move extremely fast, which can
easily make the game last only a few minutes. Holding all five nodes
will require excellent timing, strategy and communication throughout
the battle. In order to make this tactic work your team will need to
keep the enemy team spawning at their starting area. To do this assign
one person to cap the Stables or Farm, while two others head off to the
Lumber Mill and Mine. The bulk of your force should rush to the Stables
or Farm and quickly cap the flag there. Keep the enemy bottled up in
their starting zone, and watch the resources flow in. Five capping is
very difficult to achieve, but is very rewarding.

Defense Tactics

While defending a node it is your job to be sure that the flag at that
node is never capped. In order to do this defending players must always
be on the look out for enemy players attempting to cap the flag.
Defending players must be sure to damage these players before they
reach the end of the eight second channel. To make this job easier,
defenders should always do battle on or near the flag. If you happen to
die while defending a node, be hasty in your return, and
don’t hesitate to jump back into the battle.

As a defender you also have the responsibility of making the rest of
your team aware of impending attacks, and calling for support when
needed. A simple shout out in chat such as “Inc at
LM” will do to give you team the heads up that an enemy
attack is pending, however also including the number of attackers can
prove very useful.

Offense Tactics

While on offense players are required to not only go out and assault
nodes, but also to be ready to give support to any nodes that are being
attacked. This means that players need to keep a constant eye on the
map and chat to be aware of what nodes are controlled by their team,
where their team members are, and what nodes might be vulnerable to
attack.

If a team member calls out for support at a node the offensive team
members should rush to it’s defense. If not defending a node
offensive players should be looking for ways to cap additional nodes.
Here are some common ways that nodes are capped:

Zerging
- This method requires a large number of your team’s players
to attack the same node and essentially overrun the defense by sheer
numbers. This tactic can be very effective, but you run the risk of
leaving nodes undefended.

Ninja
- To accomplish this method you must become one with the ninja and
sneak cap a node while no enemy players are watching. This is more
easily accomplished by players who can stealth.

Keep
Away - With this tactic you
will attempt to pull the enemy team away from a node by a false initial
assault. You will then fall back, and if all goes well the other team
will give chase. This allows another assault team, or even a single
player to come in from behind and capture the flag.

Achievements

There are many achievements related to Arathi Basin, including a Meta
achievement, which are listed below:

About The Author

Amunet, also fondly known as Memtron, is an organic life form best known for its ongoing obsession with Blizzard Entertainment's numerous properties. To that end, Amu has authored hundreds (thousands?) of the most popular World of Warcraft guides, editorials, and Top 10 lists on the planet. When not gaming and writing, Amu is busy chasing after her three children in a perpetual loop of ongoing disaster.